Darcy just happy to keep riding the crest of Dublin's blue wave
COMING into the role as a selector under Jim Gavin, Declan Darcy knew Dublin had potential.
After all, he had been at the coalface with the county’s U-21s and was aware of how good they could be. And he knew they’d be bringing that group in to a squad that had already won an All-Ireland in 2011.
But chasing down three in a row and a fourth Sam Maguire since taking charge? He didn’t see that coming.
“I suppose when we were looking at it initially, because we had worked so long with the U-21s, we knew the quality of the players that were there, we knew them inside out,” Darcy recalled. “So we knew they had potential, we didn’t understand where that could lead us to, certainly not to where we are at the minute.
“But we’ve just kept a battle rhythm in trying to get the best out of the players as best as we can and see where that brings us. We are very fortunate to be where we are.”
There’s no doubt that Dublin football is talent-rich right now. A shadow team winning the O’Byrne Cup is proof of that but that talent has been shrewdly developed by Gavin and Co.
Management has adapted too. They were caught against Donegal in 2014, a result that looks all the more impressive with each winning Dublin season since.
But for that defeat, Dublin might be going for five in a row on Sunday. But that defeat informed a new approach. Dublin are a little less gung-ho these days.
“When you reflect on that game, I wouldn’t have put as much emphasis on it on the tactical sense.
“We lost some key battles, we were well in control of the game, so from our point we had lots of scoring opportunities, we still scored 1-17 against a defensive system that day. It was a learning curve for us all.
“There was a tactical change, I suppose. Dublin played Donegal in 2012 and you could sense there was an evolution coming in Gaelic games and we needed to adapt to that.
“Tyrone were there going at it again, other teams particularly in